Fall is upon us and the bass are coming shallow or stratifying to warm themselves and feed.
This is a great time to provide a tidy meal for large fish.
Topwater – the fleeing baitfish or collapsible frog still have value
Waking – 1 foot – the Mann 1-Minus rules, just had another guy who catches the big ones reply when I asked him what he was using “1-Minus”. Very validating, I have 2 colors.
4-10 ft – Bomber Fat Free Shad Balsa 3″ because in the words of Roland Martin “you will catch the larger fish on this size”, it is the largest of course.
You can make these run more shallow by using heavier test line. 10ft might be based on 12 pound test, mine is 55pd braid with 30lb fluorocarbon leader. The larger diameter of the 30 fluro leader will create more water resistance thus the lure will run shallower….exactly what I personally want. I just want to crank/stop/jerk the rod tip/pause…almost like a top water retrieve except the action is 1-5 feet deep. The Balsa wood floats so however deep you take it when you kill the retrieve it will gradually rise to the surface. So the big square lip these have creates a wobbly and erratic B-I-G easy meal. The treble hooks rotate and I have seen they are very effective and sinking into the fishes mouth or outside of the jaw or both.
Suspending Minnow – these can be deadly in both fall and winter, twitch and jerk it then kill the retrieve, the minnow suspends at the depth it is at and very,very,very slowly rises. So it stays in the strike zone neutrally buoyant like a dead or injured baitfish. The strike normally occurs when they suspend, the bass thinks “Ok that fish just died in front of me let me just go over here and slurp that down.”
Worm/Jig – good all year round and typically big bass baits, I use a 12″ worm (big worm for big fish) and the worm has been my #1 producer throughout the year but has not landed the big fish…yet. It has in the past and I think the new hook I will be using will enhance that. This particular hook does not stick out from the body of the worm as far (think of chewing a brownie and then feeling a small ball of aluminum foil…the fish can taste all the exposed metal…not good) AND this hook is longer so I can offer up more worm with slack in it for better hook sets.
Less likely to detect the hook due to shape and a larger area of worm with slack in it for the fish to bite down on prior to hook set = 2 really good benefits, should make a difference in terms of how many bass hold the worm longer and swallow it deeper and the % that are actually hooked. My hook set ratio is about 80%, pretty solid and once on I have not had one escape in well over 2 years. If the hook goes in, it is basically over.
Mysteriously…..a pack of worms I had ordered arrived the very first day I might even be able to fish a little. Good Kharma. Making 2 major changes 1. same size hook, same manufacturer but the shape is more favorable to my setting the hook on a big fish, less exposed metal to give away that the worm isn’t real. Longer so there is more slack worm which should allow the bass to take the bait in such a manner that they will swim off with their prize. I won’t know for sure until I bury a few until the pop out between the eyes, roof of the mouth is really good makes it hard for them to get the hook out even if they thrash around alot. That is your connection to the fish, the hook so it makes sense that would be something you would really want to zero in on.
